


Trip Through Your Wires

by edgarallanrose



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Bisexual Claire, Claire/OFC, Destiel - Freeform, Explicit Consent, F/F, F/M, First Kiss, First Time, Frottage, Hand Jobs, M/M, Minor Jody Mills/Sam Winchester, My First Smut, POV Multiple, Post-Season/Series 10, Supportive Sam
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-01
Updated: 2015-10-01
Packaged: 2018-04-24 08:49:42
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,559
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4913029
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/edgarallanrose/pseuds/edgarallanrose
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A trip to visit Claire in Sioux Falls sets a series of events in motion where secrets are revealed and feelings are reconciled.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Trip Through Your Wires

**Author's Note:**

> Title stolen from the U2 song of the same name. It is v Destiel and I highly recommend a listen.
> 
> This work is unbeta'd so any and all mistakes are my own. Feel free to point out any glaring errors so I can fix them! 
> 
> Also, god help me, it's the first time I've ever written any kind of porn/smut/what have you. Let alone posted it. Please be kind.
> 
> Story takes place one year after the season 10 finale.

“I’m just saying, you can’t beat Kirk’s ability to think on his feet and roll with the punches,” Dean argued.

“Ok, sure, but Piccard was arguably a more adept captain than Kirk,” Sam retorted, making chopping gestures with his hands to exaggerate his point. “Kirk was reckless; Piccard had his shit together.”

“Yeah that’s exactly what I’m saying. Kirk had style and Piccard was boring.” Dean smirked at his brother.

“I – You know what? We’re asking Jody when we get there; she’ll be the tie breaker,” Sam decided.

“Uh-huh. You just know it’s a lost cause and I’ve won. Ha.”

Sam chewed the side of his cheek and glared out the window in lieu of answering. Dean chuckled to himself.

They were going on the fourth hour of their impromptu road trip to Sioux Falls. Cas had called early that morning saying that he wanted to visit Claire at her temporary residence with Sherriff Jody Mills.

“Okay,” Dean had replied after Cas’ long winded explanation for his call, “So go visit her. Did you lose the address or something?”

“No…no,” Cas cleared his throat, “I still have the address.”

“Alright, so…have a safe trip?” Dean said, still unsure what the purpose of the call was. It had been so long since Cas had called just to chat that it didn’t seem a likely reason.

“I was hoping, uh, I was hoping perhaps you and Sam could meet me there,” Cas said slowly, starting to trail off at the end of his sentence like he was reconsidering his words.

“Sure Cas, if you…I mean, if you want us to be there,” Dean said, shrugging even though he knew Cas couldn’t see him. It was then Sam had looked up from whatever one-hundred pound tome he was reading through in order to give Dean a questioning look. Dean had held up a hand to signal him to wait a second.

“It’s just that you two know Sherriff Mills and I didn’t want to impose and I wasn’t sure what Claire would say or if she would even want me there so-“ Cas babbled in a quick rush of breath.

“Cas, dude, it’s fine,” Dean cut him off. “We’ll text Jody and let her know we’re comin’ and we’ll head out in the next hour, okay? We can meet you in Sioux Falls.”

“Are you sure you and Sam can spare the time; you’re not in the middle of something?”

“Nah. Besides, Sam has had a real hankering to see Jody; he won’t shut up about her,” Dean raised his eyebrows at Sam. Sam pursed his lips and made a snotty face in return. “We’ll see ya later.”

“Okay, Dean. Thank you, Dean.”

Jody, of course, had been thrilled to hear she’d have some “adult company” over. She said she could even give Donna a call and make it a real party. Truth be told Dean was happy for the distraction. He’d been cooped up in the bunker too long with his own thoughts. It hadn’t taken much to convince Sam to take the trip either, so he figured he wasn’t alone in his itch to get back on the road and go somewhere. Anywhere. So, Sam and Dean had hit the highway that morning with high spirits and a cooler full of beer.

The mood in the Impala was distinctly lighter than it had been in more time than Dean could remember. The last year or so had been too much of Sam constantly worrying over him, and Dean being too busy battling with himself to worry about Sam. Dean wouldn’t admit it, but he was more than a little pleased that the relationship with his brother was on the mend. At any rate, focusing on his brother was preferable to the gnawing feelings in his stomach that he kept getting when he remembered he was going to see Cas again. That was a broken relationship that he didn’t think would be as easy a fix.

The day was starting to turn to dusk when they pulled up to Jody’s curb. From the look of it they were the first to arrive. Sam went around to grab the cooler out of the trunk when the front porch lights flickered on.

“Well, if it ain’t the terrible twosome here to darken my doorstep,” a voice called from the doorway.

“Always good to see you too, Sherriff,” Dean grinned, bounding up the stairs to pull Jody into a bear hug.

 “Hey, Jody,” Sam said, smiling shyly and leaning in for an awkward one-armed hug, keeping the cooler tucked under his other arm. Dean smirked and rolled his eyes at his smitten bother. He was so _obvious_.

“Cas isn’t here yet?” Dean asked lightly, knowing the question hadn’t sounded as innocuous as he’d meant. This time Sam and Jody smiled at each other. Dean pretended not to notice.

“Not yet, but I’m sure he will be soon,” Jody answered, “Donna too. She texted me about a half hour ago saying she was gonna pick up dessert. Come on in guys…unless you want to hang on the porch all night and miss out on lasagna.”

Jody waved them in and pointed towards the kitchen so Sam could set down the cooler.

“Girls!” Jody called up the stairs, “Come down, please, Sam and Dean are here!”

There was a muffled reply of “Coming!” from somewhere above them.

“So, uh, have Alex and Claire been getting along then?” Dean asked. Jody huffed out a laugh.

“Not at first. Couldn’t get them to say a word to each other; just a lot of silent glares and rolling eyes. Now I can’t get them to stop conspiring against me.”

At that moment the two girls came down the stairs, Claire in the lead. Claire had some faded streaks of blue in her hair while Alex was sporting the same look, but in purple.

“Yeah, they didn’t ask permission to do that,” Jody said with a raised eyebrow in reference to the hair.

“Ugh, Winchesters,” Claire said with a crooked smile as she descended the last step. Dean grabbed her and put her in a headlock.

“How ya doin’, Claire-bear?” he said, reaching around to mess up her hair.

“Dean, I _will_ knee you where it matters,” Claire threatened as she tried to release herself, giving Dean a small shove when he let her go.

“Claire-bear?” Alex mocked from the stairs. Claire grimaced.

“Alex, you remember Sam and Dean, right?” Jody asked.

“Yeah. Hey,” Alex said with a lame wave.

“Can you two go set the table please? And grab extra chairs from the garage,” Jody requested. There was some sighing from the teenagers but they otherwise left with no protest.

“Hellooo! Jody-O?” Someone said in a sing-song as the front door creaked open.

“Hey, Donna, in here!” Jody called from their spot in the kitchen.

“Hiya!” Donna greeted as she entered, face as shining and cheery as ever. “Well, if it isn’t my two favorite not-agents, Sam and Dean.”

“What’s in the box, Hanscum?” Dean asked as he inspected the square, white bakery box in Donna’s hand while Sam went over to hug her.

“Uh, pie? Hope cherry’s ok,” she said.

Dean crossed the room and pulled her into a tight embrace.

“I love you, Donna. I’ve always loved you,” Dean said, voice choked up with emotion.

“Oh. It’s good to see you too, Dean.”

Alex reentered the kitchen to retrieve silverware from a drawer as Sam started passing around the bottles of beer.

“Oooh, don’t mind if I do,” Donna said, accepting a drink.

“Neither do I,” Alex said, reaching into the open cooler.

“Ah, I don’t think so, young lady,” Jody said, fixing her with a hard stare.

“Just one?” Alex whined.

Jody lifted one fierce eyebrow. Alex sighed and put the beer back into the cooler, and then proceeded to stomp out of the kitchen.

“So, I see the parenting is going well,” Sam commented. Jody snorted into her beer.

“Hey, Jody?” Claire called, stepping back into the kitchen.

“No, you can’t have any beer either.”

“What? No. I didn’t know that was even an option,” she said with a frown.

“It’s not.”

“I was just gonna ask if Maya could come over for dinner too?” Claire asked, raising her eyebrows in a hopeful expression.

“Yeah, of course she can,” Jody said, “Just set an extra spot.”

“Ok, thank you!” Claire replied, already tapping out a text on her phone.

“Who’s Maya?” Dean asked.

“Claire’s friend from school,” Jody answered, “She lives the next block over so they started walking together in the mornings and they’ve gotten really close.”

Sam and Dean shared a look.

“I was just as surprised as you are,” Jody shrugged.

“That’s good though,” Sam nodded, “I’m glad she’s been doing so well with you.”

They were interrupted by a knock on the door.

“That’s probably Cas,” Jody said, leaving the kitchen.

Dean took a couple extra-large gulps of his beer. He wasn’t even totally aware he was doing it.

When the door opened Dean could hear some muffled conversation coming from Jody and the unmistakable gruff undertones of Cas’ voice. He was pretending not to listen when he realized both Sam and Donna were staring at him sympathetically. He bit his tongue to prevent his usual snap of “I’m fine” that had become a habit while he still had the Mark of Cain on his arm. He didn’t have the Mark anymore, so he knew that wasn’t what the look meant. He didn’t hate it any less.

When Cas finally entered the kitchen Dean had been planning to purposefully ignore him, not even spare a glance in his direction. He should’ve known that would be too tall of an order, especially for him. He settled by just keeping Cas in his peripherals. Cas didn’t look any different than he ever did these days. It was the same knee-length trench coat, dark suit, and permanent five o’clock shadow. Dean wasn’t sure why he was always surprised to find that Cas never looked any different even though everything else had changed so much. It made him irrationally angry.

Cas had already gone around the room and greeted everyone, even hugging Sam, by the time he got to Dean. Cas looked up and held Dean’s gaze for a second before dropping his eyes to look at his feet and raising his arms out to his side in a slightly apologetic gesture as he said, “Dean.”

The bastard couldn’t even look him in the eye.

“Cas,” Dean replied. He was proud to hear the lack of emotion in his voice. If anyone noticed the strain in their reunion they didn’t say anything as Jody shuffled them into the dining room.

 

* * *

 

 

If Cas had been nervous when he had pulled up to Sherriff Jody Mills’ home, it was nothing compared to how ill he felt now. He hadn’t really expected that seeing Dean again would be all smiles and rainbows, he knew better, but the coldness of Dean’s reception was still jarring.

 _Dean isn’t the reason you came here,_ Cas reminded himself, _You’re here for Claire. You must always be here for Claire._

He declined the beer that Sam offered him. He needed something stronger, like a blow to the head.

He shoved Dean to the back of his mind (Cas had become increasingly good at this) as they moved their party to the dining room. Claire and another girl with long, dark hair were just setting the last chairs in place when Cas entered. He gave Claire a sheepish smile, which Claire returned before she crossed the room to stand on her tiptoes and put her arms around Cas’ neck and pull him into a hug.

“Never thought it’d be so good to see you,” she said quietly next to his ear so only Cas could hear.

“Thank you, I think,” Cas said, pulling away. Claire laughed. “It’s good to see you too, Claire.”

“Oh, Alex,” Claire said, calling to the other girl who had been standing awkwardly to the side, “This is Castiel, my, uh…angel.”

Alex came forward and extended a hand to Cas, who took it.

“I’ve heard a lot about you,” she said, “Being an angel sounds cool I guess.”

“Um, yes, I suppose it can be sort of ‘cool.’ Humans are also quite cool,” Cas said, shooting a glance at Claire for a cue of how to respond properly. Claire was trying to hide a smile so Cas assumed he was doing something right.

When Claire asked Cas to sit across from her and his chest filled with warmth. Yes, _this_ was why he had come here.

 

* * *

 

 

Sam had watched Claire and Cas’ exchange, and it filled him with such delight that he couldn’t help but smile. He tried not to stare and give them some privacy, but it was such a stark difference to his interaction with Dean that Sam felt better just by witnessing it. Unthinkingly, Sam took the seat on Jody’s immediate right. He blushed when Dean elbowed him in the ribs, but he figured it would only be more obvious if he moved now.

“Ta-daah!” Jody sang as she presented a large casserole dish full of steaming hot, homemade lasagna. Everyone clapped politely as they heard the front door open and close.

“Hola!” called a voice from the other room.

“That’s Maya,” Claire informed everyone as she jumped up from the table and left the dining room to greet her friend. Jody started dishing out the lasagna when Claire returned with a very tall girl with thick framed glasses and dreaded hair piled high on top of her head. Though Sam thought her most impressive feature was the wide, toothy grin that contrasted brightly against the darkness of her skin.

“Hey, it’s a party in here,” Maya remarked at the full table, “Howdy, Sheriffs.”

“Hey, Maya, dinner is just starting. Pull up a chair and make sure Alex doesn’t sneak any of my beer,” Jody said as she threw a sideways glance at Alex, who had been slowly inching her hand closer to Jody’s beverage. Alex frowned and put her hand back in her lap.

“Uh, no, I am not getting in the middle of that,” Maya said as she took her place next to Claire at the table as everyone laughed.

“So, that’s Sam and Dean,” Claire said pointing to the respective brothers, “and that’s Castiel.” Maya’s smile grew bigger, revealing the gap between her two front teeth.

“No way,” she said. Sam frowned in confusion along with Cas and Dean. “Claire’s told me everything. Besides, I’m a big fan of the Edlund books,” Maya explained, “I’ve read all of them like three times; even the unpublished ones.”

“Oh, for the love of-“ Dean cried, putting his face in his hands.

“Yeah, how come you guys never told me about those books?” Claire went on, clearly pleased by Dean’s reaction. “I found them very informative.”

“I thought they were a little misogynistic,” Alex added, “Too much man-pain and dying women for me. But I liked the introduction of the cross-roads demons that was cool.”

“Girl, that’s one of my faves!” Maya exclaimed.

“Seriously?” Dean asked, frown deepening.

“I’ve only read the first three,” Jody shrugged.

“I don’t know, I really liked the one where they bring in the angels,” Donna piped up. “Big fan of your work,” she said to Cas.

“Thank you,” Cas said politely, despite his obvious confusion.

“Yeah, all of you guys are so awesome,” Maya said, nodding enthusiastically.  

“I mean, I think most of that stuff was exaggerated,” Sam said, shifting uncomfortably in his chair.

Dean had his head on the table now, continuously moaning, “no, no, no” into his folded arms.

“I can confirm that they are significantly less awesome in person,” Claire added with a smirk. Dean lifted his head to stick his tongue out at Claire.

“Jody, please tell Claire she ain’t no great shakes, either,” Dean retorted.

“Jody, please tell Dean that he’s a grandpa who sucks at golf.”

“Jody, please tell Claire-“

“Alright, alright, we can torture Sam and Dean later,” Jody finally conceded, “but now can we please all eat this damn lasagna that I slaved over for hours and hours?”

Everyone voiced their agreement and the noise died down significantly as everyone suddenly realized how hungry they were. Sam tried to keep his appreciative mumblings to a minimum so Dean wouldn’t tease him about it later. He was about to start up a conversation with Jody when Cas spoke first.

“So, Claire,” Cas began, “how have you been?”

“Fine,” Claire shrugged.

“Do you like school?” Cas asked in an attempt to hear some elaboration from Claire.

“Yeah,” she said.

“C’mon, Claire, I know you can do better than one syllable,” Jody reprimanded.

“It’s really good,” Claire rectified.

“She was just placed on the volleyball team with me,” Maya offered, “Our first game is tomorrow and she’s so good they’re not even benching her because she’s new; she gets to play for real.”

“Shut up, Maya,” Claire said, staring down at her plate and blushing at the praise.

“No, you shut up. They didn’t let me play the first three games when I started. You’re freaking awesome,” Maya said, giving Claire one of her bright, shining smiles. Sam liked her immediately.

“I didn’t know that. Good for you, girl,” Jody said, raising her eyebrows and sharing some silent look with Donna.

“It’s not a big deal,” Claire said with another shrug. Sam could tell she was secretly pleased, protesting aside.

“I used to be on a wrestling team in high school,” Dean offered, cheeks puffed up like a chipmunk from his mouth full of food.

“Mmm, I can see that,” Alex said with a thoughtful nod.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Dean said, narrowing his eyes suspiciously.

“Wearing unitards and groping other sweaty dudes? Yeah, that totally seems like you’re kind of thing,” Alex teased. Sam barked out a laugh before he could stop himself.

“Excuse you, first of all, they’re called singlets,” Dean defended himself, jabbing a fork in Alex’s general direction.

Everyone at the table had started giggling now, even Cas.

“Whatever helps you sleep at night,” Alex countered with a grin.

“And that’s the last time I try to contribute to a conversation,” Dean said sullenly, stabbing at his lasagna.

“Dean’s just mad. Dad kept my soccer trophies because he loved me more. Plus, I was better at sports,” Sam teased.

“When did this become ‘Harass Dean’ night?” Dean asked no one in particular. Everyone laughed harder and Donna snorted, causing the laughter to pick up even more.

Sam couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen so much joy in one place. And for once, it wasn’t for the sake of ignoring some larger problem. They weren’t drinking to forget and they weren’t laughing to keep from crying. They were just happy. He shared a secret smile with Jody and his stomach did a little flip. Realizing he might get caught staring, his gaze shifted quickly back to his brother, but Dean hadn’t even noticed. For the first time that night, or possibly even the first time months, Dean and Cas were smiling at each other.

 

* * *

 

 

Dean stood in the doorway of the living room nursing his third beer and watching the girls teach Sam and Cas a game where they stuck post-it notes on their foreheads featuring the name of some notable figure, and the person wearing the post-it note had to guess who was written on it by asking yes or no questions. There was currently a lot of snickering going on because someone had the bright idea to put “Dean Winchester” on Cas’ head.

“Do I know this person?” Cas asked.

A chorus of “yes” followed.

“Is this person known for accomplishing great deeds that in some way impacted this world?”

“Um…I guess you could say that?” Sam said.

“Yes or no, Sam!” Maya reminded him, smacking his arm.

“Yes, then,” Sam corrected himself.

“Is it Jesus of Nazareth?” Cas guessed. The room erupted into laughter.

“Why don’t you join the party?” Jody asked, joining Dean in the doorway and opening herself another beer.

“I dunno. Wouldn’t want somebody too old cramping their style,” Dean joked.

“Ah, I see, you’re still pouting.”

“Yeah, basically.”

“Well, come help me out in the kitchen then, pouty-pants.”

Jody pointed Dean towards a hand towel when they got to the kitchen and directed him to start drying dishes.

“Truth is, Dean, I kind of wanted to drag you away ‘cause I have a favor to ask you,” Jody murmured, attempting to scrape some burnt bits of cheese off of the casserole dish.

“Sure, anything.”

“Well…it’s Claire,” Jody began. Dean’s stomach sank.

“Is something wrong? Can you not look after her anymore?” He asked, concerned.

“No, no, nothing like that,” Jody assured him. “I just know that she’s been sneaking out a lot at night lately. She doesn’t know I know. I thought maybe she was trying to go on a hunt by herself, but I checked all of the local news stories and there hasn’t been anything weird nearby.”

“Why don’t you just call her out on it? My Dad would’ve straight up busted my ass if he thought I was sneaking around.”

Jody snorted.

“From what I hear Claire ought to be grateful I’m not your Dad. No offense.”

“None taken.”

“Thing is, I still really need Claire to trust me. She’s been through a lot and if she thinks I’m watching her every move-“

“-Which you totally are.”

“Well, of course I totally am, but I need it to at least seem like I trust her so she feels safe to come to me if something were really wrong,” Jody explained.

“So, what, you want me to do a little stakeout type deal?” Dean asked.

“If you wouldn’t mind,” Jody said, her voice rising to a pitch of near pleading.

“Nah, I wouldn’t mind, Jody. Hopefully she’s just sneaking around with some boy that’s too old for her or something.”

“What do you mean, ‘hopefully’?” Jody scowled.

Dean opened his mouth, intent on explaining himself, but Jody’s scowl darkened. Dean shut his mouth.

 

* * *

 

 

Cas drew his trench coat tighter around himself as the wind picked up. He was barely aware of the action himself; it wasn’t as if he were actually cold. It was some strange human impulse he had adopted at some point and wasn’t able to drop. Well, either wasn’t able to or wasn’t willing to drop.

He was sitting on the hood of his Continental in the parking lot of the North Star Motel. He was renting the room next to Sam and Dean’s for the evening, but he hadn’t been able to stay confined to the room for longer than forty-five minutes before he needed air again. He found solace in looking up at the night sky in the near quiet of the South Dakotan town.

He’d been restless lately. He thought seeing Claire would settle something in him and, for the short while he was in her company, it had. But the evening had ended and the girls had school the next morning, so they had all excused themselves  with a promise from Jody that she’d make homemade ice cream if they wanted to stick around one more day to see Claire’s volleyball match.  They had all agreed.

Cas was interrupted from his thoughts by the soft sound of a door opening and closing. It was Dean exiting his motel room, fully dressed and keys in hand. Cas glanced down at the time on his phone display to see it was nearly one in the morning. The bars here were probably all closed by now if that had been Dean’s intention. Cas briefly entertained the idea of saying something to him, but it didn’t appear Dean had noticed him sitting outside yet. He dropped the idea.

Dean inserted his key into the side of the Impala and the _shift clunk_ of the lock mechanism resounded throughout the empty parking lot. Dean made a paranoid glance back to his door, where Sam still presumably slept, and then out of habit he also looked back to check his six. That’s when Dean spotted Cas. First he stiffened in surprise, then immediately turned his back as if he intended to act like he hadn’t seen him. Cas could practically hear Dean’s thoughts whirring in his head as he considered his next move. Eventually, Dean’s shoulders slumped with resolve; he relocked the car door, trudged over to Cas and wordlessly took a seat next to him on the hood of the Continental.  After several seconds of silence Dean finally said,

“You know these rooms aren’t just by the hour. You can even keep it all night long if you wanted to.” It was a very half-hearted attempt at a joke, but it still made Cas smile.

“I know, but the Perseid meteor shower is tonight. I thought,” Cas heaved a deep sigh, “Well, truthfully I don’t know what I’m hoping to get out of it…other than maybe a moment of stillness and beauty.”

“Sometimes that’s all you can really ask for,” Dean replied in a most un-Dean-like fashion. He was thoughtful, reposed. He got off the car and started toward the Impala again and Cas figured that was the end of their short conversation. But instead Dean just popped the trunk, reached into a duffle bag, and pulled out an old, dinged up flask. He took a swig himself before walking back over to Cas to offer him some.

“It’ll warm you up,” Dean explained, his unexposed hand fisted in his jacket pocket. Maybe it was colder than Castiel realized.

“Thank you, but I don’t need it like you do.” He waved away the flask. To Cas’ surprise Dean laughed a little and just extended the flask further.

“Trust me, buddy. You do.”

This time Cas accepted it and found Dean to be correct in his assumptions. He returned the flask before laying all the way back against his windshield to look up at the sky. Dean copied his movements.

They reclined there on the car without speaking for several minutes, save the occasional acknowledgment of a falling meteor or a particularly bright star. They finished off the flask between them.

“Do you miss it?” Dean asked suddenly, with no preamble. Cas didn’t need clarification on what ‘it’ was.

“Yes,” Cas said quietly. “But I should elaborate. I miss what it was.  At this moment in time I would very much prefer,” his speech petered off as he risked a side glance at Dean. He was staring right back. In the dim light of the parking lot street lamps his normally very green eyes seemed to reflect gold or amber. “I’d prefer to be here,” Cas finished.

Dean opened his mouth like he had a reply, but thought better of it. Then, as another thought flickered across his face, he resumed a seated position on the car and spoke.

“Cas, I uh, actually have a kind of mission tonight. I don’t know if I was supposed to keep it a secret from you for some reason, but I don’t see why this shouldn’t involve you too. That is, if you want it to.”

“Of course I do.” It had been a very long time since Dean had asked his help for anything. In fact, the very last time had been at that restaurant in Illinois when Dean still had the Mark and he had asked Cas to -- Cas interrupted his own thoughts. _Come on, focus, Castiel. Dean is safe now. The task at hand. Focus. Dean is safe. Dean is safe._

“Don’t freak out,” Dean prefaced. Cas rolled his eyes. “Jody’s just had a concern about Claire.” Cas must have visually stiffened with worry because Dean plowed forward. “Everything is ok, man, she’s fine. Jody just thinks she’s been sneaking out at night and wanted us to figure out why. It’s most likely just normal teenager stuff.”

“I don’t know if that should comfort me,” Cas sighed.

“She’s probably just passing around a joint with her friends or she’s crushing on a boy, something totally normal that we can handle.”

Cas gave a somewhat disgruntled murmur of disagreement, but he climbed into the passenger side of the Impala anyway. Cas highly doubted the light headed feeling he was experiencing was from the alcohol; he hadn’t had nearly enough to drink. However, that would make the alternative reason for his dizziness…Dean. Dean and the fact that it’d been a whole year since he’d spoken to Dean like this, been close to Dean like this. So, when you looked at all of the facts, it must have been the alcohol.

 

* * *

 

 

Dean felt like his entire body was buzzing like a livewire. He had to actively keep his eyes on the road instead of continuously glancing to his right to look at Cas in his passenger seat. He could hardly believe he was there, _really_ there next to him again. Cas was as stoic as ever, staring blankly ahead with his back as stiff as a board; a stark contrast to the way that Dean couldn’t stop squirming in his seat and drumming his fingertips against the steering wheel. He couldn’t even place why he was feeling this way. It wasn’t like this when Sam rode shotgun. It was probably all the whiskey. Right. The whiskey.

When they reached Jody’s house all of the lights were off inside. The rest of the neighborhood was just as sleepy and silent. Dean parked around the end of the block so the house was just in view and then killed the engine. After a couple minutes of silence Cas spoke up.

“What will we do? When we discover whatever it is that she’s doing?” He asked.

“Well, we’ll probably have to think on our feet. That is if she even goes anywhere tonight,” Dean replied with a yawn.

At that, a light flickered on in an upstairs window. In reaction Cas grabbed Dean’s shoulder. It took everything Dean had not to jump at the contact. Good God, when had this started happening? How long had this been going on and he was too much of an idiot to notice?

Dean resurfaced from his thoughts when the light switched back off.

The unmistakable, darkened figure of Claire emerged from the house. Her hands were stuffed in her jacket pockets and her pace was quick; possibly because it was cold, or possibly because she was in a rush to be somewhere.

Dean silently signaled to Cas to exit the car so they could follow on foot. They kept just enough distance behind her in order to keep her in sight but far away enough they she wouldn’t hear or sense them following. They followed her for several blocks until they were out of the residential area and buildings had become increasingly scarce. Dean and Cas exchanged a confused glance with each other as they followed her through a pasture full of sleeping cattle and a horse or two. Eventually they came upon a sort of structure to the left of the pasture and watched Claire slip through the side door.

They creeped as silently as they could right up to the side of the building which, upon close inspection, appeared to be a tack room for the horses. Dean drew his pistol from where he’d been concealing it in the waistband of his jeans. Cas gave him a judgmental frown.

“She might be in trouble!” Dean mouthed.

“Does that sound like trouble?” Cas mouthed back, nodding his head to indicate the sounds that were apparently coming from inside.

Dean was about to retort something about not having super-angel-hearing when he heard a soft giggle from the room. The giggling was followed by low voices and the gentle sound of lips against lips. Dean turned a smug face to Cas.

“Told you it was a boyfriend.”

“What now?” Cas whispered, rolling his eyes.

Dean grabbed the small flashlight clipped to the back of his belt, flicked the light on, and pushed the door in. The small circle of light illuminated a gingham patterned, beat-up loveseat at the back of the tack room where Claire was currently straddling somebodies jean-clad legs.

“Claire, break it up, time to go ho-“ Dean’s voice died in his throat. At the sound of Dean’s bellowing Claire had thrown herself off the couch to reveal her companion to be…Maya; her friend from dinner. The air in the tiny room felt like it was suddenly charged with electricity. Nobody said a word. Nobody knew what to say.

“Claire-“ Cas began gently, taking a small step forward.

Claire turned to Cas and let out a small squeak, her blue eyes blown wide with fear, like she hadn’t originally noticed Cas was there. Dean watched her expression change from one of fear to rage as she returned her gaze to Dean, eyes now brimmed with tears.

“ _Fuck you_ , Dean Winchester,” she spat before barreling past him and out the door. Dean heard Cas call for her again as he was went chasing after her.

Dean’s feet were frozen to the floor. He had no idea how to react to this situation. Maya was in a similar state of mind on the couch. Her hair was down and disheveled and her top was still unbuttoned down to her bellybutton. She had her hands out to the side in a sort of “why” gesture and she just stared at the door where Claire had left, mouth agape. As Dean turned to look back outside to see where Cas and Claire had gotten to he heard a small hiccup from behind him.

“Oh no,” Dean whispered to himself.

In the two seconds it took for him to turn around Maya was already at full waterworks, face-in-hands sobbing.

“Hey, hey, don’t cry,” Dean tried to say as calmly as he could as he awkwardly took a seat next to her. “What’s got you so upset?”

“Claire will never – _hic_ – want to see me – _hic_ – again!” The brief words she choked out only seemed to influence more tears. Dean was at a loss. The ol’ “ _What would John Winchester do?”_ standby certainly did not apply to this situation. A _“You should’ve known something like this would happen”_ or, Dean’s personal favorite, “ _Be a man. I didn’t raise any son of mine to cry like a girl”_ would not assist him in this moment.Come to think of it, Dean couldn’t really think of any situation that would warrant that kind of “comfort.”  Dean was flying blind here. Maybe it would help if he could talk to her like Sammy? Yeah, like a kid sister.

“I don’t know, Maya, you two seemed pretty…close.” Okay, that did not come out exactly as he’d planned it to. Thankfully, the effect was still positive because got a small laugh out of Maya.

“We are close. I think I’m one of the very few people she’s ever been truly close to.” Maya wiped her tears on the back of sleeve and started to readjust herself and button up her shirt.

“Well, there you go. Then why wouldn’t she want to see you again?” Dean asked. Maya frowned and bit her lip.

“Claire didn’t want anyone to know,” she explained.

“Why not? There’s nothing wrong with it,” Dean said with a shrug. “It just…is what it is.”

“No, she knows that. That’s what I thought it was about at first,” Maya admitted. “My parents know I’m gay. They’ve known since I was 12. So, I thought she just needed to get used to the idea because she’d never been when another girl before. But it isn’t about that.”

“It’s not...It’s not Jody-?” Dean questioned.

“Oh, no. God, no, Jody is totally supportive. She doesn’t know about Claire, but she knows about me. She’s never been anything less than awesome about it. It’s…well, it’s um,” Maya bit her lip again and glanced down at her feet. It looked like she was about to cry again.

“Maya, it’s okay. What is it? I just want to help Claire,” Dean explained.

Maya nodded in understanding.

“It’s Castiel,” she said flatly. “God, she’s gotta be so upset right now.”

_What?_

“Cas?” Dean voiced his confusion. “Why the hell would Cas care?”

“She thinks he won’t approve or something,” Maya said, shaking her head like she didn’t get it either. “Probably something to do with him being an Angel of the frickin’ Lord.”

“I don’t think he’s thought of himself that way for years,” Dean snorted. “Cas doesn’t give a fuck. Besides, he loves Claire like she’s…ya know, actually his daughter.”

“I wonder,” Maya speculated, “if it has something to do with her real dad. He was religious, right?”

 “Yeah,” Dean admitted, frowning in thought. “Met him once. Nice guy, but I guess I wasn’t really around him long enough to get the homophobia vibe.”

“She thinks she’s going to Hell,” Maya confessed sadly, letting out a shaky breath. Then she turned her large, brown eyes on Dean, eyelashes damp with tears. “Are we going to Hell?

“Trust me, I’ve been to Hell a few times and ain’t nobody there that don’t deserve to be. That’s not one of the things that gets you there.”

 

* * *

 

 

“Claire!” Cas called out. The frigid air caused his breath to ghost from his mouth in small puffs as he ran after her. “Claire, stop, please!”

Claire finally halted in her tracks, doubling over and putting her hands on her thighs to catch her breath. She started to sob and dropped to her knees in the grass. Cas caught up to her and kneeled next to her on the ground, first pulling off his trench coat and putting it around her shoulders. Claire started to cry so hard she was hyperventilating. The only thing Cas could think of doing was put his arm around her and hold her until she stopped. Claire clung to his arm and shook.

“Claire it’s okay,” Cas finally said. “Everything is okay.”

“I’m going to Hell,” she whispered so quietly Cas could scarcely hear her.

“Why would you think that?” Cas asked, horrified.

“Because of what I am,” she cried, her voice cracking. “And I know for a fact that Hell is a real, actual place that I can go.”

“You would never go there,” Cas assured her.

“How do you know?” she replied miserably.

Cas took Claire by both shoulders and turned her so he could look at her straight on in both eyes. Claire still avoided direct eye contact but she allowed herself to face him.

“Claire, there is nothing wrong with you,” Cas stated. “And you have done nothing wrong. Your soul is too beautiful and pure for Hell.”

“I don’t feel beautiful and pure,” Claire mumbled. Despite this, she had started to calm down. Instead of chest racking sobs her tears silently slipped down her cheeks.

“Well you are,” Cas argued. Claire laughed at this and Cas pulled her in for a full hug. She accepted his gesture and rested her chin on his shoulder. They stayed like this for several seconds.

“You really don’t care?” She asked tentatively.

“I really don’t.”

Silence again.

“I…I like boys too,” she stammered.

“You can like whoever you want, Claire.”

“Okay.”

They finally released each other and adjusted themselves so they were sitting side by side in the field. Claire pulled on the trench coat, drew her knees up to her chest, and wrapped her arms around herself. She had finally stopped crying. Cas stretched his legs out in front of him and leaned back on his elbows. They both looked skywards and Cas imagined they were both thinking of the same thing, or place, as it were.

“You know,” Cas started, “God didn’t write the Bible. Men did.”

“I know, but isn’t it supposed to be the Word of God or whatever?” she replied.

“I suppose so. Some believe that. However, you’ll find more often than not that some things get lost in translation. Even the Bible has it’s share of continuity errors.” Cas glanced over at Claire to see had gotten a small smile out of her, so he went on. “I never realized faith and religion meant so much to you.”

“Well, I mean, it was the way I was raised,” Claire shrugged. “And the faith thing was never so hard. I’ve known about angels and demons since I was a kid. Was never a huge fan of God though. No offense.”

“None taken. As Dean would say, God is currently on everyone’s shit-list.”

Claire snickered.

This got Cas thinking about Dean. In the first few years he knew the man Cas had been slightly preoccupied by apocalypses and heavenly plots to be too concerned about the exact nuances of Dean Winchester’s personality, and his feelings concerning him. He knew he liked him. Well, “like” was an understatement. He knew he was important beyond his orders from Heaven. And he’d known even then that Dean had ruined him for all future friendships and close companions. No one else would ever compare to the hunter who defied both Heaven and Hell and (for the most part) lived to tell the tale.

Recently, though, he had come to the conclusion that his feelings…well, they hadn’t _changed_ , exactly. He’s fairly certain they were there all along, but since spending so much time on Earth they had evolved. They were more complex. This made it much easier for Cas to define his own feelings, but much harder for him to interpret Dean’s. He wondered if Claire could offer some insight.

“Angels don’t actually have a formal concept of gender or sexuality,” he offered, not exactly sure how to go about asking what he intended to ask.

“Oh,” Claire answered, “I’d never really thought about it. So you guys don’t…mate or…?”

“Uh, no, angels do not reproduce,” Cas said, his cheeks burning. This was not where he had intended the conversation to go. “Though, technically, we are capable of reproducing with humans, but it’s strictly forbidden.”

“Have you ever…?” Claire left the question open, eyeing Cas with a mischievous glint. She knew she was making Cas uncomfortable.

“Aren’t you a little young for this kind of conversation?” Cas diverted.

“Oh my god, I’m eighteen,” Claire huffed in annoyance.

“Forgive me, I’m still not totally aware of some human concepts and timeframes,” Cas sassed back. “Dean’s tried to help me, but honestly he has a very roundabout way of correcting me that still sometimes goes over my head. I just wish he could say what he meant and not-” Cas cut himself off. This probably wasn’t a good time for things to be about him; he was supposed to be here for Claire. He should just drop it.

Claire remained quiet, looking at Cas thoughtfully. Cas had to glance away, suddenly finding his shoelaces very interesting.

“Never mind, Claire, we should probably-“ he started. Claire interrupted him.

“What if it was a man?”

“What?”

“Well, you technically can’t reproduce with a man,” Claire explained. “So, if you loved him, would it still be wrong? Besides, when have you ever cared about the rules? Isn’t breaking rules kind of your thing?”

“I guess it is kind of my thing,” Cas laughed. “But what if…I’m less worried about the rules and, in fact, more concerned with the way I’d be received by…the party in question.”

Claire’s mouth opened to let out a soft “ _oooh”_ and she lifted her eyebrows in mild surprise.

“Seriously? That’s what you’re questioning?”

Cas frowned at her, confused.

“Is there something I’m missing?” Cas asked.

“Just trust me, angel. You’re getting worked up over nothing. You should follow your instincts,” she advised.

Cas was about to protest that his lack of human instinct was the exact problem he was having, but then he heard the sound of people approaching and the frost covered grass being crunched underfoot. He and Claire’s heads both turned to look behind them in unison. Dean and Maya walked toward them, Maya trailing tentatively behind Dean.

Without a word Claire stood up and embraced Maya. Maya started to cry as Claire whispered apologies to her. Dean gave Cas a meaningful look and beckoned for them to walk away and give them some privacy. Cas followed Dean to the edge of the clearing and stood shoulder to shoulder as they looked on at Claire and Maya.

“Do you think they’ll be okay?” Cas questioned.

In the pale illumination from the moon they saw Claire stand on her tiptoes and wrap her arms around Maya’s neck before kissing her.

“They’re gonna be just fine,” Dean answered.

 

* * *

 

 

Sam stood up in the bleachers and cheered when Claire spiked a ball over the net and scored her team the winning points on the last set, declaring her team the victors. Jody, Donna, and Cas were standing up next to him screaming even louder. Dean was just as enthusiastic as he was when he watched pro-football. They had all decided to paint their faces in the colors of Claire’s team and brought a poster that said “GO NOVAK 07!!!” On the back they had even written “GO HENRY 02!!!” for Maya. Even Alex was actively participating. Every time Claire had looked at them in the stands she looked equal parts embarrassed and grateful.

As the teams both went to shake hands as a show of good sportsmanship, “Team Claire,” as they were calling themselves, made their way down the stairs to congratulate her.

“You guys look ridiculous,” Claire informed them as they reached the gym floor.

“WHAT TEAM?!” Dean shouted.

“WILDCATS!” Sam shouted in response.

“Oh my god, please shut up,” Claire begged.

“Claire, you were awesome!” Jody praised, going in to give Claire a hug.

“Yeah, girl, you were kickin’ tuchus and takin’ names,” Donna added.

“Guys, c’mon, stop,” Claire said, but without any real conviction.

“CLAIRE’S NUMBER ONE! CLAIRE’S NUMBER ONE!” Dean chanted, pumping his fist in the air. Sam joined in on the chant as they started to circle Claire, adding gestures and dance moves as they went.

“Cas, can you please mojo them dead?” Claire pleaded. “Or mojo me dead?”

“Not in a gymnasium full of witnesses,” Cas replied, smiling mildly.

“You were right, Claire,” Maya said, walking up to join the group, “Winchesters are _way_ dorkier in person.”

“I prefer not to be labeled, Maya, thank you very much,” Dean said with mock offense.

“Well I’m so sorry there isn’t a P.C. term for dork, ya big dork,” Maya bantered, punching Dean on the arm.

Sam watched as Dean and Maya carried on. Cas finally moved in to hug Claire, slightly quieter about his praise than the rest of them, which Claire seemed to appreciate. Jody came over to stand at Sam’s side and, without thinking, Sam slipped his arm around her waist. He was in the process of removing his arm when Jody returned the gesture and put her arm around him, so instead he relaxed.

“I often find myself wondering,” Jody said, “if Dean is good with kids, or if he’s still just a kid himself so he gets along really well with his peer group.”

Sam let out a laugh.

“I find myself wondering that too,” he admitted. “But I’m glad he and Maya have bonded. I think it’s going to help him.”

“Me too,” Jody agreed.

\---

Dean had returned to the motel room last night in the wee hours of the morning. Years of sleeping in constant vigilance had caused Sam to wake up as soon as Dean had returned but, in an attempt to give his brother some privacy, he tried to pretend he was still asleep.

“C’mon, Sammy, I know you’re awake,” Dean accused as he crashed down on his mattress, still clad in boots and jeans.

“Where were you?” Sam went ahead and asked, all pretense of sleep given up.

Dean had then explained the whole situation to him, sharing his talk with Maya and the girls being able to reunite at the end.

“Wow,” Sam said when he finished. “So do you think Claire will tell Jody now?”

“Yeah, she told me after I dropped her at home that she’d tell Jody in the morning. And she promised to stop sneaking out, so, my work here is done,” Dean said with a shrug. Dean reclined back on his bed, but didn’t close his eyes. Sam knew that look.

“So, what’s eating you then?” Sam asked.

“Nothing I’m just…upset I guess,” Dean confessed. Sam stayed silent and waited for him to elaborate. Dean sighed and continued, “I didn’t like that they thought they had to hide; and to save themselves from damnation, of all things.”

“You’re right, no one should have to hide the way they feel,” Sam said. Dean turned to face him and made eye contact for a couple of seconds before heaving a deep sigh.

 _This is it_ , Sam thought, _he’s finally going to tell me._

“Exactly,” Dean finally said.

Sam frowned. He wasn’t backing down that easy.

“Cas joined you, right?”

“Yeah,” Dean answered, voice clipped.

“And that was okay? You guys are…okay?”

“Yeah, we’re…we’re okay,” Dean said with some sincerity.

“Alright, good,” Sam said, nearly straining himself from all the things he was keeping down that he wanted to say. He couldn’t stop himself from blurting, “I was hoping, actually, that you were going out with him when I heard you leave.”

“Why?” Dean asked, narrowing his eyes at him.

“Well, I mean, you did technically go out with him you just weren’t…alone with him,” Sam clarified.

“Why would I need to be alone with him? You’re not making any sense, Sammy. I’m tired,” Dean started to roll over to go to sleep.

_Shit, you’re losing him._

“You two could use some alone time, that’s all I’m saying,” Sam added in a last desperate attempt.

“Goodnight, Sammy.”

\---

Sam looked on as Maya and Claire talked to each other, standing so close together their knees were practically touching. Maya reached out and took Claire’s hands and Claire blushed. Nearby, Cas and Dean were conversing in practically the same stance minus the hand holding.

 “Do you think they know?” Jody asked Sam quietly.

“God, I hope so.”

 

* * *

 

 

“So, I was thinking maybe I’d take the ride back with Cas,” Dean told Sam as they were packing up their duffle bags in the motel room. Sam responded with a grin that was way too wide for Dean to be comfortable.

However, “good,” was all Sam said.

Dean gave him a look, planning to glare him down. But Sam just smiled and shrugged, then continued packing his stuff.

_Definitely suspicious._

“I think he’s gonna stay at the bunker for a little while,” Dean added, “Just, ya know, want to make sure he doesn’t get lost on the way there.”

“Okay, sure Dean,” Sam said.

Of course, that wasn’t the truth. Cas had asked him earlier at the game if he could drive Dean home. Dean had said yes, and didn’t even ask why. Dean couldn’t tell that to Sam, though. Not yet, anyway.

They met Cas in the parking lot and loaded up their respective vehicles, Dean throwing his things into the trunk of the Continental. Then they were on the road back home to Lebanon.

Dean spent most of his ride with Cas in quiet companionship. Cas even let Dean pick the music. Hours flew by and the sky darkened to a deep purple as Dean watched the flat, grassy landscape whip by him outside the passenger window. They were somewhere outside of Hastings, Nebraska when Cas finally spoke up.

“I’m sorry about before, Dean,” he said.

“I was wondering if we were going to have this conversation today,” Dean said, keeping his gaze directed on the view outside.

“I would like to, if that’s okay with you,” Cas said.

“Yeah, it’s okay,” Dean conceded.

Cas took a deep breath.

“We thought we were doing what was best for you, Dean” Cas went on. “I did not enjoy doing it without your knowledge or consent. But I’d given my word to see you safe, as yourself again. I couldn’t bear the thought that…the thought that it…” Cas trailed off, his voice choked up with emotion. Dean looked at him now; he’d never seen his friend this way.

“The thought that I was incurable?” Dean finished for him. “The thought that I would always be a demon?”

“Yes,” Cas’ voice shook. Dean didn’t realize how upsetting this had apparently been for Cas. “It had seemed like you’d given up, Dean. You were so hopeless that you made me promise your destruction.”

“I am sorry about that,” Dean apologized, “that shouldn’t have been your burden to bear.”

Cas had now pulled the car over to the side of the road, so each of them could talk to each other without distraction.

“How could you ask that of me Dean?” He questioned in a way that suggested that he was immensely saddened, but not angered. “You would ask me to ‘take you out’? To destroy you? I want everything for you Dean, but that’s something I can never give you.”

Cas lowered his eyes and Dean realized a tear had escaped and was running down Cas’ cheek.

“Cas –“ Dean said gently, putting a hand on Cas’ shoulder in an effort to comfort him.

“I recreated you,” Cas said softly. “You were so broken when I found you. Barely recognizable. But even then I could see the brightness of your soul. It was radiant, Dean. It exuded kindness, selflessness, and honor.  I’d only just laid eyes on you and you were already the most beautiful human I had ever met.”

Dean was stunned.

“Why are you telling me this?” he asked.

“You have to understand why I couldn’t keep my promise to destroy you. The very thought of ripping apart this extraordinary thing I’d pieced together with my own two hands was…devastating to say the least. I’m sorry if that was selfish of me Dean, but I had to find a way to save you. I couldn’t have lived with the alternative, Dean, I couldn’t have lived without-“ he stopped himself short, but Dean knew what he meant. In fact, he was pretty familiar with the feeling himself.

“I forgive you, you know,” Dean said, placing his hand over top of Cas’. “I’m not angry anymore; especially since I would have done the exact same thing.”

Cas let out a small, sad laugh and watched as Dean threaded his fingers through Cas’. 

“Could I drive for a couple minutes?” Dean asked, suddenly struck by an idea.

“Of course, Dean,” Cas replied dreamily, mesmerized by the interlocking of his and Dean’s hands.

Dean drove them a couple of miles down the road until he found what he was looking for. He pulled off on the trail next to the highway until they were in a parking lot in front of a small lake. At this hour there were no other visitors. Dean had been counting on that.

“Where are we?” Cas asked.

“Bakersfield Park,” Dean replied, “Sammy and I like to stop here sometimes on our trips ‘cause it’s usually pretty empty.”

They both exited the car and sat on the hood, looking out at the lake. The sun had completely disappeared past the horizon now and stars were coming out. Leaves rattled in the trees as a chilly breeze came and swept over the lake.

“It’s beautiful,” Cas murmured.

Dean looked over at the sharpness of Cas’ profile; the cut of his cheekbones and the line of his jaw. In the growing darkness his usually bright blue eyes looked almost violet.

“Yeah,” Dean agreed.

Dean reached out to take Cas’ hand again, and Cas closed the space between them so they were pressed side by side, shoulder to shoulder.

“Thank you for joining me in Sioux Falls,” Cas said.

“I’m really glad I went,” Dean admitted. “It was good to see everyone.”

“Claire and Maya seemed very happy together.”

“Yeah, they did. They’re good kids,” Dean said, smiling at the memory of them.

Cas turned to face Dean, staring at him directly in the eyes. His face had a mingled expression of sadness and longing.

“You should be happy too, Dean,” Cas said emphatically.

Dean let a few seconds pass between them, to wait and see if Cas would elaborate. When he didn’t Dean decided to take the first step. He reached forward and brushed the back of his knuckles gently along Cas’ cheek. Cas’ eyelids fluttered at the touch. Dean the let his hand find a resting place at the nape of Cas’ neck as his other hand reached up to cup Castiel’s jaw, his thumb tracing along his stubble. He wanted to be slow and make it very obvious what he was about to do, so Cas would have a chance to pull away if he didn’t want it. Cas stayed still. Dean leaned in and gently pressed his lips against Cas’. When he pulled away Cas was smiling.

Cas took a step forward, pressing the back of Dean’s knees against the Continental, and kissed him back. Cas’ mouth was cold from the nighttime air, but Dean didn’t mind. He would warm it up. They kissed again. And again. Moving their lips slowly and languidly like they had the rest of their lives to do it. Maybe they did.

Cas’ hand had found itself on the back of Dean’s head and one arm snaked around his waist. Cas had been steadily pressing Dean further down onto the hood of the car so Dean was practically horizontal now. Cas left Dean’s mouth to focus intently on the exposed skin of Dean’s neck. Dean gasped when Cas started sucking a particularly deep bruise near his collar bone, and Dean’s hips had started to press upwards into Cas of their own accord. Cas began to crawl up onto hood himself and pinned Dean’s hips down with his own.

“Cas,” Dean breathed, “backseat. Please.”

Cas nodded and slid off of Dean. Dean shucked off his jacket and flannel before sliding into the backseat of the Continental. Cas followed suit, taking off his trench coat and jacket. Dean was on him in an instant. His hands ran down Cas’ sides as he deepened their kiss, running his tongue along the seam of Cas’ lips until Cas let him in. Cas tasted like frozen winter air and something herbal that he couldn’t place.

The kissing was quickly becoming less leisurely and more frantic. Cas was taking over again and pushing Dean onto his back, pulling off Dean’s t-shirt as he did so. Dean let him. Cas straddled Dean’s hips and started to unbutton his own shirt, keeping eye contact with Dean the whole time. Cas had hardly finished undoing the buttons when Dean pressed his hand to the skin on Cas’ stomach, running his palm up to his chest then back down to the top of Cas’ Enochian tattoo that was peeking out above the waistband of his pants. Dean couldn’t stand it. This man was his, _finally_ his. Dean surged upwards into a seated position and captured Cas’ lips again.

“Need you now, angel” he whispered into Cas’ mouth as he pushed his shirt off his shoulders. Cas just nodded, seemingly losing his ability to speak long ago. Dean reached down and started to unbuckle Cas’ belt. “Tell me if this is okay,” Dean insisted, “a verbal yes.”

“Yes,” Cas croaked, his voice hoarse.

Dean got the belt off and fly down in record time. He ran two fingers along the inside of the elastic on Cas’ boxers.

“Still okay?”

“Yes, Dean. Please.”

Dean finally reached down and took Cas in his hand and Cas let out a shaky breath. He was already hard. Dean began stroking him the way he liked it, firm and steady. Cas leaned in to start kissing him again, then he was grabbing down at Dean’s belt buckle.

“Okay?” Cas asked.

“Very okay.”

Cas never did anything by halves. He got Dean’s fly open then he was yanking his boxers off with his jeans. Dean stopped touching Cas so he could return the favor, running his thumbs along Cas’ hips as he exposed them. When they were both blissfully naked he pushed Cas back onto the seat so he could be on top. All things considered it was pretty roomy backseat; the benefit of having a luxury vehicle. But they were two grown men, so they still had a little squishing to do. Cas wrapped his legs behind Dean’s back and pulled him down till their bodies were pressed together. Despite the cold weather, they were both sweating now. Dean braced his elbows on both sides of Cas’ head and made eye contact with him before he started moving. Cas’ breath hitched and he hissed out a reverent, “Dean.”

They were both quiet as Dean grinded his hips into Cas. The only noises to be heard was their rhythmic panting and the sound of their own blood rushing in their ears. There was something sacred about the silence, like making too much noise would dissolve the holiness of the moment.

Cas had started tracing patterns along the freckles on Dean’s shoulders, occasionally pressing his lips against one. He started whispering things like “beautiful” and “perfect” against Dean’s skin. Dean knew he wasn’t going to last much longer.

Dean let the tip of his nose run down the length of Cas’ nose. When his lips met Cas’ he reached down between their hips and took both of their cocks in his hand. Cas bit Dean’s lip and groaned.

Dean wasn’t gentle about finishing them off. He sucked and bit at Cas’ neck just because he liked the low moans he was getting out of Cas.

“C’mon angel,” Dean breathed into his ear, “c’mon, for me, baby, for me.”

Cas did as he was told and came first, Dean following soon after.

They took their time cleaning each other up and getting back in their clothes. It might not have taken too long, but Cas smelled like sweat and sex and Dean couldn’t stop leaning in to taste him.

They both made their way back to lean against the hood of the car, the cold night air cooling their heated skin and slowing their heartrate. Dean pulled Cas close in to his side, putting a possessive arm around his hip as he traced his jawline with more kisses.

“What are you thinking about?” Dean asked.

“Family,” Cas answered. “And how I have always wanted one. I know Claire is better off with Jody, but I wish she could be here with us.”

“You are family, Cas,” Dean said, “Both of you. You’re my family.”

It was as good as any “I love you” that he could manage, and Cas seemed to think so too. The corner of his mouth tugged up into a smile.

“Thank you, Dean.”

 

THE END

**Author's Note:**

> As always, thanks for reading you lovely, dear people. 
> 
> I had been wanting to write a fic with Claire for a while, and I thought it would be interesting to play with her sexuality since it has yet to be touched upon in the show. I think we forget that Claire was actually brought up in a very religious household and I was curious to see what kind of impact that would have on her thoughts about sexuality. Then, by extension, what her impressions would be of her sort-of-surrogate dad Castiel. 
> 
> I hope you enjoyed! I always appreciate kudos and comments (especially since this is the first time I've written several of these characters AND the first time I've written any kind of porn so I would LOVE some feedback plz plz & thx).
> 
> Come say hi to me on tumblr dot com! [edgarallanrose](http://edgarallanrose.tumblr.com/)


End file.
